Bindings for water skis typically include a toe or forward piece that extends transversely over the forward portion of the foot and a heel or rearward piece to cup the heel and ankle of the skier. To accommodate different size feet, the heelpiece may be constructed to be longitudinally adjustable relative to the toepiece. In one typical binding design, a pair of laterally spaced-apart studs are anchored within the ski to extend upwardly from the upper surface of the ski. A pair of laterally spaced-apart, parallel, elongate slots are formed in the heelpiece to receive the upwardly extending studs. Wing nuts are threadably engageable with the studs to clamp the heelpiece downwardly against the upper surface of the ski after the heelpiece has been placed in the desired position.
The above-described typical heelpiece has limitations and drawbacks, including the fact that the wing nuts are often difficult to tighten to securely clamp the heelpiece in place, especially for younger skiers. As a result, the heelpiece may loosen in use and cause the ski to fall of the user's foot. Unless sufficient care is used, the wing nuts may not be properly aligned with the threads of the stud when the wing nuts are initially engaged with the stud. Consequently, the threads of the wing nut and/or the stud may be stripped or otherwise damaged. Also, if too much torque is placed on the wing nuts, the studs may actually be pulled out of the ski. In addition, the wing nuts may be misplaced or otherwise lost when they are removed from the studs.
Moreover, in the typical water ski binding described above it is difficult to obtain a snug fit between the foot and the binding while simultaneously aligning the heelpiece with the toepiece. The necessary clearance between the slots and the studs allows the heelpiece to rotate out of alignment relative to the toepiece. The foot must be first engaged into the heelpiece and then the heelpiece pressed forwardly against the heel and held in alignment with the toepiece while the wing nuts are tightened. It is difficult to simultaneously urge the footpiece against the heel, properly align the heelpiece and tighten the wing nuts all at the same time. As a result, the heelpiece often is not only misaligned relative to the toepiece, but also not loaded tightly enough against the wearer's heel for a safe, sure fit.
In an attempt to properly align the footpiece relative to the toepiece, a series of arcuate notches have been formed in the upper surface of the heelpiece along the length of the two slots to receive a correspondingly shaped, downwardly depending, circular shank portion of the wing nut. The wing nut shank portion engages with the heelpiece at the locations of the notches. As long as both wing nuts are engaged within corresponding notches, the heelpiece will be properly aligned with the toepiece. However, even with this design improvement, the heelpiece must be held tightly against the foot to position the shank of the wing nut within the proper heelpiece notch so that a snug fit is obtained between the foot and the binding. Moreover, the above-described difficulties of sufficiently tightening the wing nut without pulling the stud out of the ski, of properly engaging the threads of the wing nut with those of the stud and of losing the wing nuts still exist even with this improved design.
Furthermore, in both of the two above-described heelpiece designs, sand often lodges beneath the heelpiece and within the slots formed therein. The sand makes it difficult to slide the heelpiece back and forth on the ski to permit removal of the foot from the binding and also to adjust the binding to the size of the skier's foot.
Accordingly, it is a principal object of the present invention to provide a ski binding with a heelpiece that may be conveniently adjusted in position relative to the toepiece to snugly receive feet of different sizes, easily laterally and angularly aligned with the toepiece, and also securely fastened to the ski without requiring a high level of strength.
A particular object of the present invention is to provide a heelpiece which shifts forwardly as it is being locked into place on the ski thereby to achieve a snug fit between the foot and the water ski binding.
A further particular object of the present invention is to provide a heelpiece designed to prevent sand from lodging beneath the heelpiece or building up within the slots formed within the heelpiece for receiving the studs.